Homemade Diva {Ding} Dongs

I mean, everyone has them, unless your like my husband, than you have to look real hard for his.

But mine, my butt, is very easy to find. In high school I had nicknames like J-Lo, the white Beyonce, and booty-booty. It’s true.

I had this art class, and every time I would walk in front of a boy, all he would say was, “booty-booty-booty-booty.” And you can bet your bottom dollar that when, “I Like Big Butts” came on at school dances, my friends would all look at me and say, “Giiiirl, this is your sooooonng!”

And trust me, I hate pant shopping. With every clothing geared toward the skinny jean look, you can bet that I run far far away to the sweats section. Because big baggy sweats are SO much sexier than tight skinny jeans on my big booty…

Ok, so maybe I need a personal stylist…and some help…

You see, with pregnancy, things on your body get bigger…and wider, because a baby needs room to grow. Some days I feel like I need to strap a “wide load” sign on my back side, and other days I feel like eating ding dongs. Either way I see it, watch out…

“Beeeeep…Beeeep…Beeeep.”

Let’s be honest, whether you eat healthy or not, at some point in mostly everyone’s life, they have had a ding dong. I’m brought back to school lunches, where unwrapping a piece of tin foil was never so exciting just knowing there was circle of chocolate covered cream filled cake inside…

Yummm..

But now I’m a little for cautious and know that besides a delicious cake I also get nasty preservatives, unhealthy amounts of fat and sugar, additives, and yucky yucky stuff. This is a problem my friends…because I have been craving ding dongs like my butt depended on it.

1. Preheat oven to 350. Mix dry ingredients together in one bowl, and wet ingredients together in another. Fold wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until incorporated. Don’t overmix.

2. Spray a cake pan/square pan(8×8) etc. with non stick spray and pour batter into cake pan. Bake in oven for 20-25 minutes, or until center comes out clean. *Note: These aren’t going to rise super high, so for a higher cake, you can use a smaller pan or use a cupcake muffin pan.)

3. Once cake is done and cooled and released from pan and placed on cookie sheet, use a glass/circle cookie cuter and cut out circles.

What you do with the leftover cake is up to you…Whether you eat it, or…eat it…or eat…It’s up to you…

I promise…I won’t judge. That would be hypocrytical.

4. Set aside and make filling.

Directions: For the Filling

1. After can of coconut has been sitting in the fridge overnight, remove it. With a spoon, scoop out the full fat cream that thickened overnight and put it in a bowl. Add a few TB. of your sweetener of choice and whisk together. Put back in the fridge while you make the chocolate coating.

Directions: For the Coating:

1. Add your chocolate, oil, and sweetener in a bowl that is sitting over a pot of simmering water. (double broiler.) Continue to stir until melted. Set aside. (You can also melt the chocolate in a microwave.)

Directions: For the assembly:

1. Take your cream filling and put it in a pastry bag fitted with any tip that has a smaller hole. I use this long skinny one that has gotten in a few fights with the garbage disposal.

You can also cut out a center of the ding dong if you would like, if you don’t have a tip.

2. With your pastry bag, poke a hole in the cake a squeeze a bunch of cream into the cupcake. Squeeze hard…

I like a lot of cream in the center of my Diva Dong.

You can also poke more than one hole in the cake so filling get’s through out the middle.

Be Patient…We are almost done…

Once all the cupcakes are filled, it’s time to coat them.

Make sure your chocolate is sitting in a deep bowl so it will be easy to dip them. Simply hold the bottom of the cake with two fingers and dip into the chocolate. Set down and let the chocolate drip down to coat the sides.

It’s really messy, and not very pretty. You may have to lick your fingers a few times…darn.

If you feel it isn’t coated enough around the bottom, take a spoon or cooking brush and brush some more chocolate coating around the cake.

Set in the fridge for about 10 minutes to let the chocolate set, and then they are ready to eat.

The chocolate will stay hardened after and you won’t have to leave it in the refrigerator.

Look at all that creamy yummy goodness….

If I were making these for friends, I might have done a prettier job…But these were for me, my butt, and I…So I didn’t care how they looked, just how they tasted…

Um, these are the most amazing healthy treat I’ve seen all morning! I am so impressed! They look awesome! Out of curiosity, are the ones in your pictures GF or made with wheat? The texture of them looks great. I don’t need to make them GF, I’m just curious 😀

Holy moley Ari! I confess, I have never been a Ding Dong fan but these photos have totally converted me. Plus this would make for an awesome sandwich cake recipe too.

Btw, it’s better to have a sticky-out butt like Beyonce or JLo than a wide butt, trust me I know! Haha. But I have very much an hourglass shape (it is not as good a thing as everyone says it is) and it’s hard to find pants that fit me too! They’re all made for people who are straight up and down – if they fit in the hips they’re way too baggy in the thigh for me and so on and so forth. Such a drag, so I feel your pain! Someone once said leggings was God’s apology to women after years of corsets and restrictive dresses and I say hear hear!

I am not much for sweet recipes on my site, but these look AWESOME. And, your writing is refreshingly funny compared to lots of food blogs. Your lack of preservatives and the delicious vegan-ness is the frosting on the cake. Great post!

These look amazing!!!!!! I kept checking your blog, just waiting for your post!!! I’m definitely going to try them. I love to cook and eat healthy, but I always fall short to my weakness: desserts and sweets. So thank you for posting a better choice for desserts!

Whoa, I want some of these now! The hubby is out of town though so it probably wouldn’t be a good idea to make them when I am the only one home to eat them… Soon enough! And PS- you do not have a big booty! I would never have thought that about teeny-weeny little you!

Embrace that butt girl! With delicious treats like this to eat, who cares! I think it’s safe to say I will so gladly plump up my booty for one of those cakes. YUM!! I haven’t whipped coconut milk yet, and have always been a little scared but after seeing those, I’m going to get right on it!! They look amazing!!
Hope your pregnancy is going well and you’re feeling better! Have a great day!

Ding dongs are a crave of mine every once in a while! Haha yes I too remember as a kid the excitement of of unwrapping those precious little treats! Thanks for the alternative recipe! So I’ve only been a follower for about a month and I am seriously in love with your blog. Every time you come up with healthier alternatives and great recipes! As a certified trainer and nutrition freak I am thankful for blogs like yours that inspire other people to live healthier. Starting next Thursday I am gonna have a link up for Healthy recipes of any kind along with my own . I would absolutely LOVE it if you would link up!

In the cake part of the recipe, you could use any oil of choice, like canola. As for the coating, the coconut oil is what hardens it, so unfortunately there isn’t a better or same as substitute. The chocolate will still harden in the fridge, so you could simply omit! Hope that helps!

I used a bar that was dairy free that I got at a health food store. It was only sweetened with a natural sweetener, and it was dark chocolate, not a milk chocolate…But you do have to be careful because some have dairy in them.

I absolutely love everything about this post… From the title to the story behind it to the recipe. I just made whipped cream out of coconut milk for the first time so I am beyond excited to try this!!! Yummmm

Oh Mu Gosh – I think I just found heaven…I {heart} ding dongs. They don’t seem to be as good as they used to be. I must must must must try and make these. Your post also had me laughing out loud at my desk now my co-workers are suspect at what I am doing over here. LOL

You did such an amazing job with this one. I Love it , Love it , Love it….. It’s my first time on your blog, I am now following and can’t wait to read more. I hope you’ll visit my vegetarian gluten free blog ; I would love it if you followed back.

I didn’t read all of the comments, but it seems like making the cake in a cupcake pan and then filling and dipping in chocolate would save time and cake. Of course it would not look like at traditional ding dong but hey I’m all about saving time!

OMG… these loook… AMAZING! i also have a large end. and an incredibly strong sweet tooth (which i’ve abandoned for lent)… but i cannot wait to make these!! as someone who’s allergic to dairy i have long missed these treats of the past! no longer 🙂

can you freeze these? Does the coconut milk go weird if it’s frozen? I want to make these ahead, and keep them in the freezer until the day I need them, but don’t want them to be gross once they thaw. I don’t want to be disappointed if I freeze them, and then take one out to see, and if it’s ruined all of them, I’ll be so sad. Can anyone tell me, if they’ve done this (freeze them) and tell me how it works out? Thanks 🙂

Just made the Ding Dongs and to say they are absolutely delicious would be a major understatement! These were amazing and I say were as they disappeared rather quickly!! Thanks for such a great recipe, YOU ROCK!

I’m So sorry! When you made the frosting, did you only use the thick cream part from the can or did you use both the cream and water? Underneath the cream is a watery liquid which should be discarded and not used in the frosting. If it isn’t thick enough, you can set it in the fridge for a few hours and it should firm up immediately. As for the cake not rising, the only thing I can think of would be that your Baking powder/soda is old or the oven temp was off…I’m not sure though. I’m super sorry. I know that lots of readers have made them and they turned out, so maybe some of the things above that I mentioned would help…again so sorry!

I had the same problem with the filling. The can (full fat) had been in the fridge for days, I only used the cream part and left the liquid, yet the result was a very very watery cream. It wouldn’t even stay in the icing bag…
Everything else turned out ok, but ding dongs without cream are not the same 🙁

Hi Marta! I’m so sorry you had this problem. I’ve noticed that no brand of cream are the same, some are more watery than others. But the Thai brand I have found is the best, or Trader Joes sells actual coconut cream in a can without the liquid. Hope that helps!

OMG! I am so excited to make this today! I found this on Pinterest and I really love all of your recipes, can’t wait to try them. I too try to eat healthy and need new recipes to inspired that are hearty and tasty. So thanks for all you do!

Well for the actual cake part, you can just use a different oil of choice. As for the chocolate coating, coconut oil is the only thing that works because the oil causes the chocolate to harden. But you could just omit the oil and coat in melted chocolate too! As for the filling, there are no other substitutes that I know of that are similar to the coconut cream filling. SO I would suggest, if you want, to fill with a ricemallow cream (which is like marshmallow fluff) or just buy marshmallow fluff or make your own buttercream. Although those suggestions are not the healthiest, it’s really all that I can think of. Such a bummer your daughter can’t have coconut! So sorry!

So, I have been a professional baker for 27 years. I liked the cake part of the recipe since gf cake can be crumbly and this was not. However, I am clueless as to how you got something that is that high with this amount of batter and using a 9 x 9 pan. Doesn’t seem possible. I will try the recipe again. I also made the chocolate icing, and doubled it because even reading the recipe, it did not seem like enough. The doubling of it was just barely enough, so again I don’t see how you covered all of those ding dongs with the original amount of chocolate. But, apparently, it worked for almost everyone else. So much for years of experience.

I’m so sorry Diana that you it didn’t work for you. For the chocolate, I just lightly coated the cakes. In one of the pictures, you can tell that I barely have any chocolate left and I have one ding dong left. I just lightly brushed them with chocolate. But definitely having more chocolate coating sounds better, and I don’t blame you for making more. As for the height of the cupcakes, I’m not sure what to tell you. Mine were not super high, but if you want them higher I would suggest a smaller pan.
Again so sorry!

You should glaze them on a cooling rack over a baking sheet to make the process cleaner and easier! Keep recycling the chocolate that will gather on the sheet to glaze the remaining cakes! Can’t wait to try this recipe 🙂 bowlhalffull.blogspot.com

OMG. I LOVE DING DONGS. I have been GF for 3 years now and thought my life was pretty much over when I realized I couldn’t EVER have them again!!! When I was pregnant, I had my husband buy a huge box of them from Sam’s Club every week or so……..they were my biggest weakness! This recipe is soooooo awesome and I want to THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for sharing! You have saved my depressing GF, ding dong free life!! 🙂 You’re a saint!!!

And Coconut cream will work just fine, and you could probably use most of the can, you might have to adjust the sweetener a little bit to your desired taste.
And yes the Xantham gum is for the gluten free flour. You could probably omit, but I think it helps with binding.
Hope that helps, please let me know if you make them!!

I made these today (well, started yesterday with the coconut milk in the fridge thing). The cake turned out surprisingly light and springy! Surprising in a flour made with garbanzo and fava beans (though I realize there are other ingredients). I don’t have a pastry tip or good substitute and I got lazy, so I just did slices with the coconut creme (no sweetener), with berries and orange dark chocolate bits sprinkled on top. Absolutely divine! Thank you.

Unfortunately I don’t, but the cake alone only has 1/4 c. of maple syrup for the whole cake, the filling only has a few TB. of sweetener, and if you use a pure chocolate coating, it won’t have very much. But I’m so sorry, I don’t have the exact nutritional info! 🙁

Ari- thank you so much for this! I will try to make them as the store bought ones now taste like blech!!! I grew up enjoying the original ones- I am ancient :o)
I love your down to earth attitude; you had us laughing to near tears, thank you.I’ve bookmarked you and will drop in from time to time and see what else ya got cooking up. Again, thanks for your time and work, much appreciated.
J.

haha I love you Jana, you brought a smile to my face! I’m sorry for what you are going through, but I promise your tummy will feel better and you will find a love of a whole new type of foods that you never knew of :-)!

I made these ding dongs looks great in the pic but how do you get coconut milk to firm like cream .i thought i should get coconut cream not thick enough sorry messy choc dip also .there has to be an easier way

You have to put the can of coconut milk in the fridge overnight for it to become thick. It won’t be thick like ice cream, but more like a whipped cream. You can keep it in the fridge until you use it so it stays thick. As for the chocolate coating, it’s not a necessarily ‘clean’ typed of think, you could drizzle chocolate on it, but it would still make a little mess. I always place parchment paper below so I can just throw it away after! Hope that helps Brenda!

Hi Barbara!
Unfortunately I have never tried using grain free flour, but I do know that almond flour is pretty delicate. If anything, I am sure that the texture would change, but would most likely still be delicious! 🙂

Made these yesterday and there’s none left. Not. One. Absolutely amazing! I ate them almost all by myself and the few vanity pounds I lost from christmas indulgence, I’m sure are on their way back to my butt right now. But it’s fine, it was totally worth it. These just so rocked!

I am planning on making these tonight. I put my can of full fat coconut milk in the fridge at 4 AM. Just wanted to ask for any tips on the cream filling. How do you know when there is enough/too little/too much? Thanks in advance.

I actually made them before I saw this comment, but that’s exactly what happened! Only one exploded, which I ate of course! Plus the leftovers cake (over the course of a few days). I took the rest to work and everyone said they loved them! I love dates! Mmm… Thanks for the recipe!

Made these today after finding the recipe on Pinterest and they were fabulous. Thank you! The only thing is my coconut milk did not separate in the can but it was thickish. I proceeded as usual and it was still tasty 🙂

EEK! I’m almost hyperventilating because, Yes, these are dairy free, but almost as importantly, I HAVE ALL THE INGREDIENTS ON HAND!!!!! Okay, maybe I recently used up my can of coconut milk for some homemade curry sauce, but EVERYTHING else is here and my guy is going to the grocery store for me and our daughter. I’m super-excited. THANKS!! and perhaps I’ll let you know how these turned out in one of my reverieofapicturebook.com posts!!! DingDongs would make a great reference in a blog about children’s books, no? 🙂

I love this recipe and went out to get all of the ingredients but can’t find dates! Everyone is out of dates! Is there something I could substitute the dates with?! I’m dying to make this but don’t wanna kill it without the dates! Thank youuuuu

I Kay! That’s terrible everyone is out of dates! You could try raisin puree or banana puree. With raisins, you don’t need to soak them, just blend them. And bananas just mash them. But bananas might be a little more watery than dates, so it may change the consistency a tad.I would say that raising puree would be the most similar to date puree :)! Hope that helps!

What is the primary purpose of the date paste? To sweeten? Or also for the cake texture. I don’t have any on hand and I looked at the recipe you adapted this one from and noticed it used yogurt but no dates. Would that be sufficient or do I need the dates for the consistency/texture of the cake? Looking forward to trying!

What is the consistency of you batter? I made these tonight and while it turned out tasting just fine, the cake was heavy! I had to spread the batter and pat it into cake pan. 🙁 I’ll have to try again, but I thought I’d ask if it was heavy or runny batter.

It definitely shouldn’t be that thick, I’m so sorry! There are two possible things that MIGHT have happened. Either the coconut oil hardened when it reached the batter, or the dates were super dry, and the paste was really thick? again, so sorry!

I made these yesterday and they were really good! Everyone that had them really loved them!! But I couldn’t get anywhere close to the amount of cream in them that you have in the pictures. How do you get so much cream in them without it coming out everywhere? I used a pastry bag and long tip but very little filling went in before it started coming out the top or even breaking the cake apart. Thanks for the recipe- they were soooo yummy!

Hi Erica! So glad you guys enjoyed them!
In one of the pictures of where I am holding the ding dong I added extra cream after I cut it open (for pictures). But for the other cakes I would poke a whole 1-3 times in the center of the cake and fill a little bit in each area. Hope that helps!

Thank you Arielle, that makes sense. I made these again for people at my work- they loved them and had several people fighting to take home the leftovers! They are my new favorite dessert to make and am going to make some for an upcoming baby shower!
Thank you!!

LOL, I had to tell you that your ‘booty’ story fits me to a T! Everything you said! Even right down to having to look REAL hard to find my husband’s booty! HAHA, so funny, had to tell you! Also, can’t wait to try these, they look amazing! My son wants them for his birthday. 🙂

You are AMAZING! I started getting paid to bake @ 8 – now 65. I’ve deprived myself of most goodies to lose weight and be healthier (lost 10 lbs in a month) most healthy baked goods look gross when reading ingredients–NOT this! The only thing — I’ll swap raisins for dates since I hate dates! When it stops raining going for coconut milk — all out.

Trying to be healthier, married to a ding dong aholic. Used to find little foil balls around the house from scrunched up ding dong wrap. Showed him this picture and he was all like “those look deeeeelicious”……read the ingredients out loud and he said “dates?, why would you need dates?…..will make and see what he thinks after eating one 🙂

How well do these freeze? Looking for freezer treats that I can send to school for my 6 yr who was newly diagnosed with Celiac. These would be perfect for the school to keep a couple in tgecfreezer for times when the are birthdaycelebration if tgey freeze and thaw well.

Holy cow!!!!!
I can’t wait to give this a try.
I’m sure you know that sugar-free, gluten-free vegan desserts that deliver decadent yumminess are nigh-impossible to find.
This looks like it might deliver.
Thank you!

I need anything to help with my mother who can no longer tolerate anything with gluten. Cramps and trips to the throne are just a few of the problems she has if she eats the wrong things. (Not fort he faint of heart, I know.) And gluten free is coming into its own, and many recipes are VERY good.http://3d662ex87aq4nqk3v6lju26n1y.hop.clickbank.net/

One of the things I lamented when I had to go gluten free was Drakes Ring Dings. I can’t believe these look so gorgeous and are gluten free! And they don’t even look that complicated! Can’t wait to try them! Thanks you!

I would like to make these and ship them to family… Do they need to be refrigerated? Or can they last two days without refrigerating? You mention the chocolate stays hard, but will the cream be okay too?

Is the baking time the same if I use a cupcake pan? I think it would be a lot more convenient and not waste any of the chocolate cake with having to use a cookie cutter and cut out of the block of cake, but I want to make sure I do it right. Thanks for any tips on this.

Now are dates similar to figs? I know I always liked fig newtons. Haven’t had these cookies in a long time. They were delicious too. I am not sure that I am too familiar with dates. Are they in the baking isle or produce?